BARZERO

BSAC SPORTS DIVER

Why take this course?

If you are an Ocean Diver who wants to do more, the Sports Diver course will give you the freedom to explore. Being a Sports Diver
allows most people to do all the diving they want in the UK and abroad..

If you already have some diving experience with an entry-level qualification and want to take your underwater adventures to the
next level, Sports Diver is your next step in BSAC's Diver Training Programme.

You will broaden your experience in a variety of challenging open-water conditions, and learn essential techniques to prepare
you for diving to a maximum of 35 metres.

To enrol on a Sport Diver course you must have successfully completed an Ocean Diver course (or have equivalent certification
from another recognised training agency) and be aged 12 or older, but you need to be 14 or older to progress to depths greater
than 20m post qualification.

Skills that make Sports Divers stand out from the crowd include doing longer deeper dives, with decompression
stops if needed.

You'll learn how to spot if something is wrong and what to do in an emergency including self-rescue, recovery of unresponsive divers,
and basic life support - these are among the most valuable skills any diver can learn..

The course includes six theory modules, a practical session on how to support a Dive Manager, a sheltered-water rescue skills
session, and six open-water dives with plenty of time to practise your skills.

It's a continually assessed course, so after your classroom and in-water training and a short theory exam, you'll be competent to
complete a series of depth progression dives - at increments of 5m - enabling you to dive down to a maximum of 35m.

What you'll qualify to do

Qualified Sports Divers can dive buddied with another Sports Diver, in familiar locations and conditions, allowing you more freedom
to explore. You can also support a Dive Manager as a competent assistant, the first step on the road to helping to organise diving
within your club. You can extend your experience by diving with someone qualified as a Dive Leader or above, under the supervision
of a Dive Manager. You can also dive with an Ocean Diver, so long as you stay within conditions they have already encountered.

Your qualification will be recognised worldwide and you will be certified to use breathing gas mixtures of up to 36 per cent
nitrox to increase your dive times.

What diving experiences will this open up for me?

Being competent to dive to 35m allows most divers to do all the diving they want in the UK and abroad. At these depths you can
access the majority of UK wreck diving, and with Sport Diver skills you can extend your dive times safely and relax to take in
your surroundings and any wildlife you encounter.

Qualifying as a Sport Diver will also enable you to take part in a wider variety of BSAC Skill Development Courses to increase
your diving skills.

Training at Divebarzero allows you to learn at your own pace, spreading your training sessions over several weeks.
You'll be taught by volunteers who are keen divers, and will attend club training sessions with other BSAC members.

You can get involved in social events at your club, and start building a network of friends to go diving with in future.
Many clubs have access to boats, compressors, and diving kit that members can use.

An Sports Diver's view...

Your next steps - developing your skills

You could learn to plan and lead dives by doing the Dive Leader course, which is the next grade in BSAC's Diver Training Programme,
and takes you further on the path to helping organise dives and expeditions within your club.

You could develop specific skills to expand your diving interests further. There are more than 30 BSAC Skill Development Courses
(SDCs) open to Sports Divers from Ice Diving or Underwater Photography, to Closed Circuit Rebreather Diver and Sports Mixed Gas
Diver training.

You could start on the road to instructing by signing up for BSAC's Instructor Foundation Course to become an Assistant
Diving Instructor.